Beneath Christmas Boughs
by mabelreid
Summary: One Shot Follow-up to "The Trade" Reid finally give Emily her gift on Christmas Eve.


**_Disclaimer: see my profile_**

**_A/n this is a follow-up to "The Trade," and although you don't have to read that one, I'd like it if you would. This is dedicated to Lolyncut. Have a happy holiday season everyone. _**

Emily drew on Reid's light pink dress shirt and buttoned it, leaving it open so that a hint of cleavage could be seen. She ran her hands through her hair, and blinked her eyes. The clock said it was just before midnight on Christmas Eve. Reid was nowhere to be seen and she wondered what might be bothering him so that he'd left her alone in his bed.

She left the bedside lamp glowing and walked barefoot out past his small kitchen to his living room. In one, the corner of the room stood a Christmas tree. It was full size about five feet tall. It filled the room with a fresh pine scent that Reid once told her was one of his favorite smells. She smirked, recalling what he said about smell as the weakest sense.

The tree lights were on, the only illumination in the room. Morgan had brought the tree to Reid and she had circled it with gold and white lights, red, gold and white ornaments and silver icicles, so that it fairly glowed like it belonged in Narnia or with Alice and her friends in Wonderland.

Emily had placed a drape around the bottom of the tree that was covered with sparkles and looked like real snow. The only thing that was missing for her was a little village under the tree as her mother always had. When she was a kid, she liked to imagine that people actually lived in the hand painted houses, or skied on the slopes under the tree.

Now, her eyes were fastened on a long, lean body lying under that tree. Reid was on his back, lying with his head under the lowest boughs of the tree. He wore dark blue sleep pants with white and dark green stripes, and a matching dark green tee shirt. His short hair was a bit mussed from their recent lovemaking and a faint pink glow in his cheeks made him resemble a little boy just in from the a bitterly cold day.

She walked closer to the couch, trying to stay quiet as her feet whispered over the light beige carpet. He didn't move and she thought he might be asleep. She stopped next to the couch and watched him. He didn't appear to have heard her or know that she was there.

She smirked and walked over to the tree. "What are you doing?" She said.

He jumped, sat up, and nearly banged his head on a bough. As it was, a couple of the ornaments fell off the tree and one ended up tangled in his hair, hanging next to his right ear.

She burst out laughing as he glared at her. "Emily!"

She dropped to her knees and hugged him as he pulled at the red ornament in his hair. "I'm sorry and startled you. You looked so peaceful lying there. I just had to get your attention."

He was staring at her cleavage and ignoring her. He'd even stopped trying to take the ornament out of his hair.

She waved a hand in front of his face. "Hey!"

"What?"

"You're staring at my chest."

He raised his eyes slowly to her laughing eyes. "Sorry," he said.

"You're not at all sorry, but that's okay. I happen to like it when you stare at me."

He shifted around to face her, with the pear shaped ornament still hanging from his ear. Holding back her laughter was almost painful so she concentrated on his eyes as she reached out and plucked the ornament away.

"What's wrong?"

He wasn't answering her, so she rested one hand on his shoulder. His eyes dropped away from her face to the carpet. He began to rock a little so she stroked his hair and kneaded his neck a little. The quick change in his mood startled her and sent her heart beating.

"Tell me what's wrong," she repeated softly.

"I brought something for you, but I don't know if I should give it to you," he finally said.

"It is nearly Christmas," she reminded him. "I like presents."

He smiled just a little, but it didn't touch his eyes. "I'll get it for you."

He reached over for his messenger back, which he left between the entertainment center and the Christmas tree. He unzipped it slowly then stopped, looking up at her.

"Hey," she stroked his face. "It's okay."

He nodded and reached into the depths on his bag. The square package he withdrew was wrapped in bright green paper with Santa's dancing on it. She bit back a laugh and took the package.

He watched her like his life depended on it as she ripped off the paper, "Oh Reid, where did you get this?"

She opened the book and looked at the flyleaf. "It's signed too."

She leaned over and captured his lips with her mouth. The kiss was brief compared to the embraces they'd shared that evening, but the warmth of him washed over her like warm summer rain.

"Thank you," she sighed into this mouth when he released her.

"You're welcome."

She hugged him tight, holding on to him, relishing in the smell of his hair and the strength in his thin body, "Where did you find it?"

"It wasn't that hard."

She pulled away and met his eyes. "That's a first edition."

He looked down at the carpet again and she could feel his nerves making his heart race.

"What did you do?"

"I have a friend that owed me a favor. I traded this for something he wanted very much."

"What did you trade?"

"Does it matter?"

She shrugged, and smiled at him. "I don't suppose it does."

She kissed him again, this time long and deep so that his hands tangled in her hair and sent her heart to racing and her skin tingling.

"I didn't know if you'd like it or not," he said when she let him speak. "I thought that - well I thought it might remind you - oh I don't know."

He looked down at the floor again. She reached under his chin so she could look him straight in the eye. "I really wanted to go with you to see Solaris that night, but I knew he was watching. I couldn't bear it if he saw how I cared for you - how much I loved you. He would've made you suffer more than the rest of the team, had he known."

Reid pulled out of her embrace. "I can take care of myself."

"Don't get irritated," she snapped. "I love you and I'll be damned if you get hurt because of me."

"I don't want to go over this ground again," he snapped back at her, his face going scarlet.

"I don't want to go over it either, but you don't make it easy. I'm never going to let anything like that happen to you, ever!"

Her dark eyes blazed like twin lasers into his heart. "I'm sorry," he said.

"I'm the one that's sorry. Can we please just put this behind us and go on?

He hesitantly touched her hair, as if she might break apart and fly away. "I'm not mad at you anymore Emily. I'm just glad I got to give you that book. When I thought you were dead, I almost threw it in the trash, but I couldn't bring myself to just give it up. It reminded me of you no matter how much it hurt."

She closed the cover of "Solaris," and set it aside on the glass-topped coffee table.

"I'm glad you kept it. I just wish I had something for you."

He pulled her in close and stroked her back. "I don't want anything but you. You're all I need Emily. Please just promise me you'll never leave me like that again."

"I promise," she whispered hotly in his ear. "You're never getting rid of me again."

She pushed him back on the floor so that he laid half in and half under the tree again. The boughs swayed and a couple more ornaments fell off, but neither of them noticed.

Midnight crept up on silent feet, while two people joined and became as one in the deepest part of night. They didn't need snow, Santa Claus or a fancy gift, love was the greatest gift of all.


End file.
